BREAKING NEWS:
‘NIGERIA Government is Requesting Britain to Extradite DIEZANI ALISON-MADUEKE, former Oil Minister’ -Economic and Financial Crimes Commission
*Faults long-delay in corruption probe in United Kingdom
*After Diezani’s arrest in London October 2015 as part of a probe into global corruption, she has been on bail ever since
* Linked to a string of money laundering, bribery; asset recovery cases in Nigeria, Italy and the United States
*Evidence showed that billions of dollars were siphoned from oil deals, state accounts, including to pay for properties in exclusive areas of Lagos and London
*‘I am innocent of fraud charges. I worked hard for all my funds. I have not stolen any fund’ -erstwhile OPEC President denies
* “It is very unreasonable that she is not being tried there,” he told a news conference in the capital, Abuja. That’s why I say, if you cannot prosecute her, bring her here. We will prosecute her”-Ibrahim Magu, EFCC Chairman
BY NIRAN OYEDIPE/ANTI-CRIME EDITOR, ABUJA & LOVETH AJAGU/JUDICIARY
THE HIDE-AND-SICK GAME OF NIGERIA’S FORMER OIL MINISTER, DIEZANI ALISON-MADUEKE in United Kingdom (UK) may soon come to an end as Nigeria’s prime anti-crime agency, Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) has called and requested Britain to extradite Madueke to the country so she may face rigorous prosecution for corruption charges.
The head of Nigeria’s main anti-corruption agency has said he wanted former oil minister Alison-Madueke to be extradited to face trial because a corruption probe against her in Britain was taking too long. Alison-Madueke, who served under president Goodluck Jonathan and was the first female head of OPEC, was arrested in London in October 2015 as part of a probe into global corruption.
Alison-Madueke, who served under president Goodluck Jonathan and was the first female head of OPEC, was arrested in London in October 2015 as part of a probe into global corruption. She has been on bail ever since, and been linked to a string of money laundering, bribery and asset recovery cases in Nigeria, Italy and the United States. The claims are that billions of dollars were siphoned from oil deals and state accounts, including to pay for properties in exclusive areas of Lagos and London.
For 57 year old Alison-Madueke reportedly denied the corruption charges, claiming she has never stolen any fund in the country, “I have never stolen any fund in Nigeria. I am a very hard working person. I am not guilty of any corrupt charges.”
For the records, Nigeria’s government has previously appeared happy to have Alison-Madueke potentially face trial in Britain.
A judge in Lagos in November last year even accused her of seeking to “avoid justice” after her lawyers applied to have her name attached to a fraud case. Nigerian court cases frequently last years and there is criticism about corruption in the judiciary.
But the chairman of the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC), Ibrahim Magu, said the British probe began even before he was appointed and she had still not been charged.
“It is very unreasonable that she is not being tried there,” he told a news conference in the capital, Abuja. That’s why I say, if you cannot prosecute her, bring her here. We will prosecute her… We cannot wait endlessly like this. I think three years and above is sufficient to take her to court. There’s no prosecution, nobody is prosecuting her there. That’s why I said let us initiate (an) extradition process.”
There was no immediate response from the interior ministry in London, the National Crime Agency or the British mission in Abuja.
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